Erasmus James (born November 4, 1982) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

, and earned consensus All-American honors. He was drafted by the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

18th overall in the

2005 NFL Draft The 2005 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The NFL draft, draft was held April 23–24, 2005 NFL seaso ...

, and played professionally for the Vikings and the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL).

Early years

James was born in

Basseterre Basseterre (; Saint Kitts Creole: ''Basterre'') is the capital and largest city of Saint Kitts and Nevis with an estimated population of 14,000 in 2018. Geographically, the Basseterre port is located at , on the south western coast of Saint Kitt ...

Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Kitts and Nevis (), officially the Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis, is an island country and microstate consisting of the two islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis, both located in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands chain of ...

. He attended

McArthur High School McArthur High School is located in Hollywood, Florida. It serves students from both Hollywood and Pembroke Pines in grades 9 through 12. The school is a part of the Broward County Public Schools district. History Alfred Ryll (former Mayor of ...

Hollywood, Florida Hollywood is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States, located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. As of July 1, 2019, Hollywood had a population of 154,817. Founded in 1925, the city grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, and is now ...

, and was a standout for the McArthur Mustangs high school football and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

teams. Despite not playing football until his senior year, he posted 14

quarterback sack In gridiron football, a sack occurs when the quarterback (or another offensive player acting as a passer) is tackled behind the line of scrimmage before throwing a forward pass, when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in th ...

s, and 53

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position), a position in American football and Canadian football ** Dump tackle, a forceful move in rugby of picking u ...

(23 for losses) in his only season.

College career

James attended the

in Madison, and played for the

Wisconsin Badgers football The Wisconsin Badgers football program represents the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the sport of American football. Wisconsin competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the W ...

team from 2001 to 2004. He played on the defensive line alongside teammate Anttaj Hawthorne and

Jonathan Clinkscale Jonathan Clinkscale (born November 17, 1982) is a former American football right guard. He played college football at University of Wisconsin. He went undrafted and played professionally for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Cincinnati Bengals ...

. He finished his career with 124 tackles (25.5 for losses), 18 sacks, 28 quarterback hurries, seven forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and six pass deflections. James was nicknamed "The Eraser" for his ability to sack opposing quarterbacks. He was a first-team All-

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

selection and was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American following his senior season in 2004.

Professional career

325-pound bench press. 600-pound squat.pass-rusher saluted, scolded for his play
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Minnesota Vikings

James was drafted by the

18th overall in the

. During his rookie year, he compiled 28 total tackles and four sacks. James missed most of the 2006 and 2007 seasons with injuries. The Vikings made their intentions clear to

waive A waiver is the voluntary relinquishment or surrender of some known right or privilege. Regulatory agencies of state departments or the federal government may issue waivers to exempt companies from certain regulations. For example, a United St ...

James on May 23, 2008, but later rescinded the waiver after the Washington Redskins offered a conditional 2009 seventh-round draft choice. He finished his injury-plagued career with the Vikings with 37 tackles and 5 sacks.

Washington Redskins

On May 27, 2008, the Vikings agreed to trade James to the

for a conditional seventh-round pick in the

2009 NFL Draft The 2009 NFL Draft was the seventy-fourth annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City, New York, on April 25 and 26, 2009. T ...

. He appeared in five games for the Redskins in 2008 but did not record any statistics and was eventually waived on December 9, 2008.

NFL statistics

Personal life

James currently resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

References

External links

Minnesota Vikings bioWashington Redskins bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:James, Erasmus 1982 births Living people People from Basseterre All-American college football players American football defensive ends Minnesota Vikings players Saint Kitts and Nevis emigrants to the United States Saint Kitts and Nevis players of American football Washington Redskins players Wisconsin Badgers football players New Mexico Stars players